US looks into evasion of anti-dumping duties and subsidies on local solar panels
VOV.VN - The US Department of Commerce (DOC) has announced the initiation of an anti-dumping and anti-subsidy tax evasion investigation into solar panels imported from several markets, including Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, and Cambodia.
The products which are set to be placed under investigation are crystalline silicon photovoltaic cells and modules (CSPV), mainly under HS codes: 8501.71, 8501.72, 8501.80, 8507.20, 8541.42, and 8541.43.
This comes after the United States plaintiff accused Vietnamese enterprises of evading anti-dumping and anti-subsidy taxes that the US is currently applying to solar battery products imported from China.
Specifically, these firms have been accused of importing starting materials, such as silicon wafers, from China, processing, assembling, and making "insignificant changes" to them to produce photovoltaic cells and modules for export to the US.
Currently, Chinese solar battery products are subject to anti-dumping tax ranging from 15.85% to 238.95% by the US and an anti-subsidy tax between 11.97% and 15.24%.
The Trade Remedies Authority under the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) said in February that the US had also extended the application of global safeguard measures, which are applicable to all countries with solar battery products coded 8541.40.6015 and 8541.40.6025 for an additional four years. This is in the form of tariff quotas with an applicable tax rate of 14.75% for the first year and gradually decreasing annually by 0.25%.
In response to the case, the MoIT recommends that local solar battery manufacturers exporting items to the US market keep a close watch on the situation and co-ordinate closely with the investigation agency throughout the investigation process. Indeed, this should be done as a means of ensuring the legitimate rights and interests of Vietnamese enterprises.